Services & Pricing

Your ultimate event price will depend on your actual usage of theater space, labor, equipment, and box office services. Pre-event meetings with union staff can help you come up with a realistic picture of the technical & rehearsal needs for your show and a reasonable estimate for the event. Your success in sticking to pre-arranged rehearsal times and equipment usage and in meeting ticket sales targets will play an important role in how closely your final invoice matches the estimate.

There are four main categories of pricing which will appear on your contract: room usage fee, theater production, front of house, and box office. This page gives detailed information on room usage fees, ticketing, theater production and labor, equipment, and hospitality.

Theater prices listed below are effective July 1, 2018.

Room Usage Fees:

This is the basic fee for access to the space and is inclusive of some resources.

Shannon Hall

WU Members/External Groups

University Depts./Govt. Agencies/Non-Profit Orgs.

RSO/WUD

Performance Day (12 hrs.)

$3000.00

$2250.00

$1500.00

Rehearsal Day (12 hrs.)

$2200.00

$1650.00

$1100.00

Tech Day (12 hrs.)

$400.00

$300.00

$200.00

Classical Music Rental

$1800.00

$1350.00

$900.00

Lecture (6 hrs.)

$800.00

$600.00

$400.00

Lecture (12 hrs.)

$1400.00

$1050.00

$700.00

Exceeding 12 hrs. in one day

$400.00

$300.00

$200.00

Play Circle

WU Members/External Groups

University Depts./Govt. Agencies/Non-Profit Orgs.

RSO/WUD

Performance Day (12 hrs.)

$150.00

$112.00

$75.00

Rehearsal Day (12 hrs.)

$75.00

$56.25

$37.50

Tech Day (12 hrs.)

$50.00

$37.50

$25.00

Exceeding 12 hrs. in one day

$100.00

$75.00

$50.00

Weekly Rate

$600.00

$450.00

$300.00

Note: If rehearsal and performance take place on the same day, the performance day fee applies. If tech and rehearsal take place on same day, rehearsal day fee applies.

Ticketing:

To request Box Office services, begin by filling out this form. Requests for ticketing services should be made 30 business daysprior to the target on-sale date.

The following information is required in order to set up ticket sales in our system:

Title, Date(s) and time(s) of event

Location of event (venue)

Ticket prices

Target date for tickets to go on sale

Information about whether it is a general seating or assigned seating event

Information about house scaling. Several standard tiering options are available upon request.

Additional information about any discounts, vouchers, or coupons that will be applied to sales (the box office must receive a physical copy of any voucher or coupon prior to tickets going on sale)

Information about any ticket holds or comp tickets requested

Campus Arts Ticketing Fees (all fees folded into ticket price):

Set-Up Fee

Campus Arts Ticketing Fee

Night of Show Bow Office Service

Facility Fee

Wisconsin State Sales Tax

Credit Card Processing

Events at Wisconsin Union Theater (Shannon Hall or Play Circle)

Paid admission events

$0

$1.00 per ticket sold at box office or on consignment

$0.50 per comp ticket

$0

$2.00 per paid admission ticket

5.5%

5% of total credit card purchases

Free events

$0

$0.50 per free ticket distributed through box office or on consignment

$0

n/a

5.5%

5% of total credit card purchases (for on-line distribution)

Events at other locations (Union South, Mills Hall, Music Hall and other on and off-campus locations)

Paid admission events

$0

$1.00 per ticket sold at box office or on consignment

$0.50 per comp ticket

$75.00 + labor

n/a

5.5%

5% of total credit card purchases

Free Events

$0

$0.50 per free ticket distributed through box office or on consignment

$75.00 + labor

n/a

5.5%

5% of total credit card purchases (for on-line distribution)

In addition, ticket purchasers are assessed the following fees with their ticket order:

$4.00 convenience fee per ticket for all tickets purchased on-line, by mail, or over the phone. This applies to on-line distribution of free tickets as well.

No convenience fee for tickets purchased in person at one of our campus box office locations. Box office location & hours available here.

Facility fee of $2.00 per paid admission ticket for shows in Shannon Hall and Play Circle. This fee is folded into the published ticket price.

Additional Information About The Box Office:

Night of show box office hours extend to 10-30 minutes after the show start time. If you would like the box office to remain open for a longer period of time, please let us know during your production meeting.

Permanent box office locations include: Memorial Union (in the west wing lobby on the first floor) and Vilas Hall (on the East Campus Mall side of the building at street level).

Comp tickets are allowed up to 10% of the house. If performance reaches profit sharing revenue cap, then the renter may give away as many complimentary tickets as desired. Renter will be charged $0.15 per ticket on printed complimentary tickets.

If you're interested in remote box office services for day-of-show ticket sales, consignment tickets to sell outside of the box office, or offering coupons for discounted tickets/promotions, contact Heather Good or Ted Harks.

The WUT Technical Director will schedule an appropriate number of stagehands to meet the needs of each event. An event in Shannon Hall requires a minimum crew of 3 stagehands (with more needed depending on the complexity of the event). Play Circle events typically require 2-3 stagehands. In most cases, shows are crewed by Student and LTE stagehands. If experienced crew members are not available for a particular show, we will hire unionized stagehands from Local 251 to fill the gap. If you prefer to work with Local 251, please request as such at the contract signing meeting.

Union Theater stagehands are not stage managers or production managers. For a successful event, groups who use the theater for live performances should provide their own stage manager and/or production manager. If you’re not sure what your needs are, or if you’re unsure about the role of stagehands at your event, discuss with theater staff at the contract signing or production meeting.

Scheduling crew breaks: daily rehearsal and performance schedules must include one hour break after five hours of work. During break time, nothing can be happening on the stage. Prior to performances, break time must be scheduled before the doors are open to the public. If using IATSE crew, additional breaks and work call rules may apply.

Theater rental and service charges are based on rental for up to 12 hours on a given day. Exceeding this 12-hour limit will result in an additional Technical/Set-Up fee.

Front of House Labor includes:

Door staff: Required for all Shannon Hall and Play Circle audience events. Shannon Hall events require a Front of House Supervisor and 2-6 door staff, depending on the anticipated audience size and needs. Play Circle events require 1-2 door staff. Groups may supplement Union Theater door staff with volunteers to greet audience members and hand out programs.

Ushers: Required for all reserved seating events in Shannon Hall (a minimum crew of 8), but are not required for general admission events. (Note: We can accommodate general admission events, but not reserved seating events, in the Play Circle).

Additional items and charges may apply to your event. There is no equipment charge for use of the following items: choral risers, curtains and other soft goods, cyc, lectern, music stands, orchestra chairs, platforms, tables for backstage use. Learn more about technical details and equipment here.

Hospitality

Union Catering can provide all your backstage hospitality and catering needs (outside food is not allowed). For more information, visit the catering website at:http://www.union.wisc.edu/catering/

All catering orders must be placed through the Campus Events Services Office, Memorial Union 2nd Floor:

Please note that catering orders must be place a minimum of 2 weeksprior to your event.

Other amenities available at Memorial Union include several restaurants and lounges, Daily Scoop ice cream, Peet's Café and more. There is an ATM machine in the West Wing lobby on the 1stfloor.

Additional Rental Policies:

Revenue Sharing: For paid admission events in Shannon Hall there is a charge of 15% of the gross ticket revenue, capping at $3000.00.

Merchandise sales are allowed in the Sunset Lounge or Play Circle lobby during intermission and after the show. Per University policy, the Wisconsin Union receives 20% of total receipts from merchandise sales. This can be settled on the night of the show or on the invoice. Please let us know if you are planning to sell merchandise at your event.